Which Companies Donate Products to Fundraisers?

Many national companies run product-donation programs that fundraisers can apply to, and the 15 strong examples below are grouped by what they typically provide: gift cards and certificates, tickets and experiences, merchandise, and food. This page is part of our fundraiser donation answers library, and it draws on the same directory of 4,000+ companies tracked that powers every donor page on this site.

This page also supersedes our original donor list as our current answer to this question — that older piece is still live, but start here for the version we keep fresh. One honest caveat before the list: donation programs change their rules, forms, and availability often, so this page never asserts current specifics. Each company name links to its donor page, which tracks what its program has historically offered and its status at our last check.

15 companies that donate to fundraisers

Here are 15 companies worth shortlisting, deliberately spread across categories — food, entertainment, travel, home, fitness, and children's brands — so that most event types find a fit. The company link goes to its donor page; the category link goes to the full list of similar companies. If your event has a narrow theme, skip ahead to the router section at the end, which points you to the roundup built for your exact event type.

Gift cards and certificates

Gift cards and certificates are the most flexible donation a fundraiser can receive, which is why organizers ask restaurant and retail companies first. A card works in almost any event format: on its own as a raffle prize, bundled into a themed basket for a silent auction, stacked with others into a "date night" or "family night" bundle, or held back as a thank-you for a standout volunteer. Cards also ship easily and never expire on your event timeline the way perishable goods can.

Restaurant chains are the classic source. A dinner-out certificate tied to a familiar name like Olive Garden or a bakery-café chain like Panera Bread is easy for guests to value and easy for winners to use, which keeps raffle tickets moving and auction bids honest. On the retail side, a national bookstore chain like Barnes & Noble suits school and library events, and a beauty retailer like Sephora anchors a self-care basket that reliably draws bids at gala-style events.

Two practical notes. First, gift-card requests are often handled locally, so a short, polite ask at a nearby location — with your event date and documentation ready — is a reasonable route alongside any online form. Second, never assume a specific card amount or quantity; each company's donor page tracks what its program has historically offered and its current status.

Tickets and experiences

Tickets and experiences turn a donation into a memory, and they routinely out-earn physical goods at auctions because guests bid on things they cannot simply buy off a shelf. Pro sports teams are a strong starting point: a Major League club like the San Francisco Giants gives a local crowd something to cheer for, whether the item is game tickets or team-branded memorabilia — a signed team jersey, for example — with the same hometown pull.

Family-experience companies widen the net. An indoor water park resort company like Great Wolf Lodge and a trampoline-park company like Urban Air both appeal to the parents who dominate school and youth-event audiences, while a cruise line like Carnival Cruise Lines sits at the aspirational end of the range and can headline a live-auction moment. Experience donations usually name blackout dates and validity windows, so read the fine print before you print your catalog, and build in lead time — many programs ask for several weeks' notice, and travel items tend to sit at the longer end. For historical offer patterns and current program status, start from each company's donor page.

Merchandise and products

Physical merchandise fills the tables at silent auctions, stocks prize walls, and gives smaller events something tangible to show donors. The strongest picks are brands guests recognize on sight. A premium cooler and drinkware brand like Yeti is a proven bid magnet for outdoor and golf-adjacent events, while a candles and home-fragrance name like Yankee Candle rounds out cozy gift baskets that sell well at school and church functions.

Sporting-goods retail is a natural ally for team-based fundraisers: a company like Dick's Sporting Goods sits close to the mission of any youth league, and equipment or gear makes the donation feel purpose-built for your audience. For classroom and family events, an art-supplies maker like Crayola is instantly understood by parents, and items of that kind are inexpensive to display and easy to split across multiple prize baskets. Merchandise programs vary widely in what they ship and to whom, so treat the donor pages as your source for what each program has historically provided rather than assuming any specific item.

Food and treats

Food donations do double duty: they can be raffled or auctioned like any prize, or they can feed the event itself — concession tables, volunteer rooms, morning kickoffs. Sweets travel especially well. A doughnut chain like Krispy Kreme is a natural fit for morning events and youth-sports concession stands. A chocolate maker like Ghirardelli lends a premium feel to gift baskets and dessert-table auctions. A candy company like Jelly Belly brings kid-appeal to carnivals, classroom parties, and prize bags.

Plan the logistics before the ask: perishables need a pickup date close to the event, storage on site, and a backup plan if attendance runs short. Shelf-stable treats are more forgiving and can roll over to your next event if sealed. As with every entry on this page, check the company's donor page for its program's historical patterns and current status before you build your menu around it.

Which list should you start with?

This page is a router — the fastest path is the list built for your event type:

• Running a restaurant-heavy event or a percentage night? Start with our roundup of restaurants that donate to fundraisers, which separates certificate donations from percentage nights.
• Filling a raffle? You want many lower-value, quick-turnaround prizes — see companies that donate raffle prizes.
• Building a silent auction? You want fewer, higher-value items with real lead time — see companies that donate silent auction items.
• Raising money for a school, PTA, PTO, or booster club? See companies that donate to schools and PTAs.
• Outfitting or funding a team? See companies that donate to youth sports.

Whichever list you start with, the pattern is the same: shortlist companies that fit your audience, confirm current program status on each donor page, and ask early. A short, specific request — who you are, what the event supports, when it happens, and what documentation you can provide — beats a long one, and asking well before your deadline leaves room for the programs that move slowly. Start with five to ten asks from one list above, track responses, and widen from there.